~
nocturnal, semi-terrestrial/arboreal, herbivorous ~
Size:
Well, they get from
9-11 inches, but they weigh almost nothing.
Life Span:
Chinchillas reach about
15 years in captivity, and a whopping 10 years in the wild.
Cage Size
Anything that is made
to fit a ferret is ideal for chins. Although most chins don't
understand the concept of the climbing up the tube thing,
some will figure it out if you give them some help. If you are
to make a cage, just find a commercially made cage for chins or
ferrets and copy that. They do need to be able to climb
UP, but that's the most important factor.
Heating
Chins do fine in 0
degree weather, they ARE from the Andes mountains. But that also
means anything over 75 is getting too hot for it (Just like
me!). No heating is required for these little fluff balls.
Substrate
I recommend using a
wire bottom, but if you need to put something down, aspen
shavings and timothy hay should work fine. If you do use a wire
bottom, give them a flat spot so rest or sleep, some don't like
standing on the wire for an extended period of time.
Feeding
Pretty easy: chinchilla
food. Always leave food in there for it. You may offer timothy
hay once a week to keep their hair soft and clean.
IMPORTANT:
DUST BATHES: Because
chinchillas are from the Andes, and there is a very low humidity
there, they need the dust (powdered volcanic dust) to roll in
twice a week in Fl. or once a week up north to dry out their
skin and fur. It also keeps them soft and shiny. Because of this
low humidity requirement, THEY MUST NOT GET WET. If they do,
they (or other chins in the same cage) will most likely pull the
wet hair out. Because their fur is so dense (More dense than any
other animal on the planet!) it takes days or weeks to dry off
completely, and by then completely ruining the fur. One of our
chins managed to escape then jump into a toilet, which I found x
amount of hours after it happened, just sitting there in water
up to its neck looking up at me. This is not good! I was pretty
sure it was going to die, but it's alright now. First, dry off
the hair with a towel, and try to be careful. Then you may use a
hair dryer on low, just don't leave it on the chin for too long,
only about 20 seconds at a time. While doing this, keep toweling
it off. After that, use a rabbit or chinchilla (preferably
metal) brush to comb it. this will separate the fur follicles
and allow for more air to get between them. Keep repeating each
step over and over for a while until you think it would alright
to leave by itself. Make sure you do this every once and a
while, just without the hair dryer, and give the chin a lot more
attention to ensure its happiness and willingness to survive.
